So the reason why I called the sermon series
Hidden Treasures is because there's one kind
of hidden theme throughout these three chapters
of Zephaniah. Again, a very minor prophet. Again,
minor, major, only having to do with kind of
the size of the books in the scriptures. But
we are in the end. We are coming to the end of
Zephaniah. But this hidden treasure, this theme
that seems to be in all of kind of the woe to
all of you, and not woe in a good way, but woe
is in watch out what's coming, or it's coming,
or whatever, is hope. And hope is a very interesting
thing. Because when I say the word hope, a lot
of things can come out in us kind of emotionally
or intellectually. You know, we have this hope
of whatever. we could go through and have every
one of you say, what are some things that you
hope for? And the answers would be drastically
different. But the thing that Zephaniah is putting
in here toward the end, and I think he's hitting
it in a very, very intentional way, is there's
a profound hope in the words of the message he's
giving. Absolutely. Thank you. Thank you, God.
But understand that there is not only a hope
to his message, there has been hope even through
discipline. So I want to start there this morning.
When you were growing up, or maybe even now,
and you were, quote unquote, disciplined by a
parent, a grandparent, aunt, uncle, what have
you. Again, we're not going to go through what
all the different variety of levels of discipline
or intensity or verbal or physical or whatever
is. Did you ever think there was hope in that?
That when you knew that you were going, mom says
just wait until your dad gets home. Did you ever
feel a sense of hope with that? Anybody? No.
Some of you are shaking your head right away.
Some of you are looking right at your dad and
making it awkward. But understand that There
is hope in discipline, and it's not necessarily
for those getting disciplined. It's hope for
the one doing the discipline. What do you think
I mean by that? That if you are the parent or
the disciplinarian, and you have an air of hope
to you, what do you think I mean by that? That
there's hope in the way that you dole out the
discipline. Anyone want to give it a shout? Give
it a try? Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. A lot
of disciplinarians over here, okay? Nikki, go
ahead. That will cause positive change. We pray
for all of those in Nikki's classes, that that
is kind of her understanding. We had Melanie,
right? A change of behavior, right? Because if
you're going to continue to discipline and you
get the same result, that's not discipline with
hope. That's actually a definition of insanity,
right? That insanity's definition is what? Does
anyone want to take a stab? What is it? Yeah,
doing the same thing over and over, but expecting
different results, right? And so you may think
about, wait, that's the definition of insanity?
I'm insane, right? Happy Memorial Day. Welcome
to Muncher Church. Take that with you. That's
between you and you and you and God. But understand
that the discipline is actually hopeful. That
we all would agree, Zephaniah has had heavy messages
of judgment and darkness because of God's wrath.
We don't like that word, but that's part of that.
That God's justice, God's wrath, that God is
a just -filled God and hopes that we would live
the same way. In this last message, he puts a
little bow on it. We now hear a message of hope,
restoration, and promise. We're actually invited
to sing. Today. I love, and this is just how
the Lord works, and Evan, you will be my testimony
to this, did you and I talk about doing that
song during the offertory this week? Not at all.
I wanted to, I wrote a post -it note to myself
to ask the worship committee to do it, and I
completely forgot. Yet they put it in there anyway.
Not because they can read my mind. Well, maybe
some of them can. But understand that that to
me is just a God thing. That song, It Is Well
or Peace Like a River, however you know it, is
exactly the heart of this sermon today. That
we are invited to sing along even in the midst
of hell on earth because of the hope God gives
to his people. There's a triumphant promise here,
and he wants us to not only engage, we are commanded
to sing. How many of you think that you have
an average to above average voice in singing?
Clearly there's no humility there, but understand
that that's a gift. Some people have the gift
of singing. How many of you know you don't have
the gift of singing? Those hands went up way
too fast. And it was about 90 % of our church.
Sorry, worship committee. But understand, it's
a joyful noise, and that's what we love. But
understand that the command to sing, why do we
sing in life? Right? When do you find yourself
singing the most in life? In your day -to -day?
What? I was looking more for place, but okay.
But when Joel's happy, he sings. That's fantastic.
Anyone else? In the car, absolutely. With other
people there? A lot of you are like, no, by myself.
Or the voices in my head. And just understand
that we do that in the car. Anywhere else do
we sing? Okay, weirdos. You don't have to say
that one out loud. We all thought it. But the
shower, sure. Singing in the shower. Okay? Anywhere
else? Thank you. Gosh. Made it third. And so
we'll work on it. But understand, we sing here.
Why? Because the scriptures tell us to sing.
Sing to the Lord. The creation's already doing
it. We should be doing it as well. But singing
can be very intimate. Singing can be very awkward.
Singing can bring about the joy of a moment.
Or... And I'll liken this to 2019. That same
song that we sung that gives me hope of God with
what Zephaniah is saying brought my family and
I comfort as we're singing that song at the end
of my sister's funeral. Isn't it funny what songs
can do when put in the right time? You want to
see the power of it, just YouTube different parts
of movies that are put to different songs. And
it's just, it's hilarious how they do it. How
music really makes a moment in a movie or in
a play or whatever really, really hit. You put
the wrong one in there and it totally messes
it up. But this rejoicing that we are being called
to. We are first and foremost, starting with
verse 14, called to rejoice in God's restoration.
Right? Rejoicing in God's restoration. And we're
going to jump to, we're in chapter 3, verse 14.
Where Zephaniah writes, sing aloud, O daughter
of Zion. Shout, O Israel. Rejoice and exalt with
your heart. O daughter of Jerusalem, the Lord
has taken away the judgments against you. He
has cleared away your enemies. The king of Israel,
the Lord, is in your midst. You shall never again
fear evil. And so what we have is we have a call
to sing. That Zephaniah begins this section with
what we call an imperative, right? Sing aloud,
O daughter of Zion. Shout, O Israel. This is
a command. It's not a suggestion. It's not, if
you feel like it, right? Put your hands in the
air or sing. No, this is a command that people
are called to actively rejoice because of God's
work of salvation. Here's a first question for
you this morning. Outside of the 75 minutes we
do on Sunday mornings, Here at Munster, for you,
when other times in your life, in your days,
in your weeks, are you actively rejoicing, not
because you got the thing at work, or not because
of this thing that went well, or not because
the Little League team won the game, or whatever,
but actively rejoicing in God's salvation? See,
that question changes it, that last part. Because
God's salvation is for everybody. Those of us
that have tasted that salvation and are believers,
we should be actively rejoicing that that neighbor
you can't stand can be saved by Jesus. That family
member you want nothing to do with can be saved
by Jesus. That relationship that has been broken
and maybe broke you in the process, that person
can be saved by Jesus. And that is really the
ultimate perspective. Not that you need to be
the one to save them. But that your hope and
your rejoice that they might become saved. So
why is Israel called to sing aloud? Because of
the victory God has won on their behalf. He's
taken away the judgments. The Lord has removed
the sins and the oppression that plagued his
people. The enemies were defeated. God's wrath
against sin had been satisfied. So what kind
of song is this? This isn't taps. Where we remember
those that are fallen. Or what the military does
at the end of their day. And their night vespers.
Their evening vespers. This is a song of victory.
Celebration of God's mercy and grace. When's
the last time you celebrated God's grace in your
life? Or God's mercy in your life? Or, if you're
like me, I don't really rejoice in that. I ask
for it more because I don't feel I'm getting
enough. See how that perspective shifts? God,
you are already at work. You are doing something.
No matter what my day looks like, no matter what
my week looks like, you are at work. Do we understand
that God has already dealt with sin? When we
see the deliverance in Christ, we are called
to rejoice. And rejoicing is not passive. It's
an active thing. And for some of us, we kind
of can just do it like, I rejoice in the salvation
of the Lord. You say it like you have to go to
Costco on a Saturday. That is something very
different, right? That's almost impossible. Salvation
is not. That we have that in Jesus. God's goodness
and salvation. We should be active through song
and prayer, acts of service. One of the things
I can't wait for this summer is we're going to
be laying plans with some new leadership to restart.
Our prayer ministry here at Munster. You'll be
hearing about that in the coming weeks. That
that is something that has been. I know a lot
of you have been praying. Some of you get together
to pray. And that's phenomenal. But if you go
back in the history of this church. You go back
15, almost 20 years. There was a vibrant prayer
ministry in this church. And shame on us for
not having continued that. Because especially
as we look to the horizon. For potentially some
big things. We need to be laying the foundation
of prayer. That we're going to have people trained
on prayer this fall. We're going to have people
that come in. The prayer shepherd of our denomination
is going to come for a couple days and a couple
classes virtually and in person to teach those
that have the gift of prayer to be active in
that. And I know there's at least a dozen of
you that have talked about getting that started
back up, so you better sign up. Because we need
to be active in this. We have to be active because
the Lord's presence is active. The Lord is active
in our midst. This God, cosmic creator, is personal.
Like I've said before, is closer to you than
your two front teeth. So let's jump to verse
16. God's presence in our midst. On that day,
it shall be said to Jerusalem, Fear not, O Zion.
Let not your hands grow weak. The Lord your God
is in your midst, a mighty one who will save.
He will rejoice over you with gladness. He will
quiet you by his love. He will exalt over you
with loud singing. There is a beautiful understanding
of God at work in our midst. But what are we
focusing on here? What does Zephaniah want us
to see in this? That God is both our warrior
and our shepherd. Well, that's interesting. Because
who does that sound like? A warrior and a shepherd.
David. We see that through the Davidic line.
Warrior and shepherd from the beginning. Genesis
all the way through to Jesus. It's lifted up.
That we are called to be a calming presence.
A shepherding voice to the world that is hurting.
But we're also called to fight for the needs
of the world. That's what I love about the two
commissions, Matthew 25, Matthew 28. And I will
always say, Matthew 28 is upheld with the foundation
of Matthew 25. Pastor Jim, what in the world
are you talking about? Doing the tangible needs
to meet the marginalized where they are, to love
them and serve them is a way, not in a bait and
switch, but is a way that Jesus is at work in
those relationships to bring that restoration.
So Zephaniah shifts our focus. The Lord your
God is in your midst, a mighty one to save. He's
not distant. He's near. Think about that for
a minute. That God is near to you. I know I say
it in a fun way that he's closer to you than
your two front teeth, and I guarantee you 80
% of you go like this or wipe your teeth with
your tongue. It's weird. But understand that
the God of the cosmos is near to you. I don't
know about you, but I have to think, why me?
Because he loves me. No, there are going to be
times that my boys are going to frustrate Carrie
and I. We never want them to think we're distant.
Because to Carrie and I, I don't believe that's
a good position for parents to have, that parents
need to be near. One of the things we're growing
in in our council, elders and deacons, that a
council of a church needs to be near. Our ministry
committees and all that need to be near to the
people. Because when you're not, it's just ivory
tower leadership then. And that's not good. Because
that's not close to anybody. There's an intimacy.
There's a one -on -one aspect and relationship
that God has with his people. And not only is
God near, he's mighty to save. How can we understand
that kind of more in the Hebrew? It's that he's
looking for the opportunity to save you. That
you are on the agenda for God's love. Have you
ever thought about that? For God so loved the
world, he gave his one and only son. There's
intentionality. Yet this warrior is also a gentle
shepherd. He rejoices over you with gladness.
He quiets you. By love, this juxtaposition of
God's might and tenderness really reveals his
character. He's strong enough to fight for us
and tender enough to walk us through those hard
moments of life. And we all know people, even
in this sanctuary, that are walking through hard
aspects of life. A God that is willing and able
and does conquer death itself is also near to
you. This is a God that we are called to rejoice
in. I think that's worthy of a song or two, isn't
it? That he is near to us, fighting our battles.
He delights in us. Because really, kind of the
end game for all of this, and this is going to
sting, is joy. J -O -Y. It is a gift of the Spirit.
It is a place believers should be. That if we
think of all these things that God has done for
us, we should have joy even in the midst of sadness.
Now that doesn't mean you have to laugh at a
funeral, right? But understand that as believers,
our joy should be a perspective. Yet it's probably
one of the number one things that people don't
do as believers. That is, we live this life imperfectly
and just doing our best. People should see joy.
Because I guarantee you, that will throw the
world. What do you mean you have joy in the circumstances
you find yourself? How in the world can you have
joy in what you're going through? Because all
this has been accomplished. And we know we're
not living for this minute. We're not living
for today. His presence is a source of peace
and joy. Just as Zephaniah called Israel to rejoice
in God's presence, we too can find joy in the
fact that God is with us, fighting for us, but
also caring for us. So restoration comes, there's
an end game to restoration. It's bringing what
was once broken now to fullness. Mike Togman
is really the longest church relationship that
I have. I'm going off script. You're going to
hate it, but I don't care. Mike and I don't always
agree on everything. There are times we'll sit
in the office and we will debate. It would be
a lot of fun for people to watch because the
amount of rabbit trails is unbelievable. But
at the end of the day, Mike and I love each other.
We have an intimacy that even if... We disagree.
Even if there's conflict, I know that I know
that I know, and Mike knows that he knows that
he knows, the next day or two days, depending
on how mad you made me, is that we will come
back together and we will find fullness to restoration.
Now I'm going to put you on the spot. Would you
agree? Absolutely. I didn't even tell him to
say yes or we would have had conflict and it
would have taken two days because the office
is closed tomorrow. We would have got to restoration
on Tuesday. But it's a goal. of our relationship,
and half of you right now don't like that. Not
because it's Mike and I, but you don't want to
have the goal of restoration. At the end of the
day, you like to have your little ledger. Oh,
I want that pound of flesh from them. I want,
oh, just two ounces of flesh from them. Oh, only
one ounce for them. No. You cannot know joy if
that is how you function in your relationships.
You can't. But what Zephaniah is telling us is
there's a fullness to restoration. Let's dive
in to verse 18. That 18 says, I will gather those
of you who mourn for the festival so that you
will no longer suffer reproach. Behold, at that
time I will deal with your oppressors. I will
save the lame and gather the outcasts. I will
change their shame into praise and renown in
all the earth. At that time I will bring you
in. At that time I will gather you together.
For I will make you renowned and praised among
all the peoples of the earth. When I restore
your fortunes before your eyes, says the Lord.
God promises to gather those who mourn and deal
with the oppressors. The shame of his people
will be removed and the brokenness of sin and
exile will be healed. He will restore his people,
not just physically, but spiritually and emotionally.
This is a picture of complete healing and restoration.
And 99 % of us, in a statistic I just made up,
but I think is true, we struggle to get there.
We struggle to get there because of our sin.
We struggle to get there because we have been
hurt. Hurt people hurt people. All of those systems
that we live in and live among, at the end of
the day, we like to remember and hold. Even after
we've forgiven, we like to tack that back on
to another relationship or another conflict,
potentially even with that same person. Friend,
that is not... Restoration. That is just delayed
conflict. That is just delayed wanting your pound
of flesh. That is just vengeance at that point,
not restoration. The ultimate restoration is
not just historical in what we're getting from
Zephaniah. It's not just eschological pointing
to the future of God's promise, which we learned
in Revelation. God will bring his people into
the fullness of what? His glory. How in the world
can you sit in God's glory and not be restored
and not have joy? Friends, I've got to tell you,
I think there are some of you that are going
to complain about the menu in heaven. Right?
Or there are some of you that are going to eat
the perch up there and go, this isn't like Teebles.
I don't know if you can get kicked out of heaven.
That might be one way to do it. But think about
that. Think about it. My room in heaven. It's
just not the right temperature. This is just
coming to you now. If it's really hot, I'm just
going to leave it there. It means you're in hell.
That's exactly what it means, right? If it's
too hot. In case some of you are like, what is
wrong with him? Don't ask that question. But
understand that I think... some of us are going
to sit in God's glory and complain. How? If you're
fully restored and have the joy of God in your
life, how can we complain? Because the future
glory is about God's kingdom, not yours. In verse
20, God says, I will bring you in. At that time,
I will gather you together. This speaks of the
future time that God will gather his people,
remove their shame, and fully restore. This is
a promise of the new heavens and the new earth
where God has dwelt with his people forever.
The future glory is the ultimate hope of a believer.
Because let's be honest. If all it is is living
for today and that's all we had to pin our hopes
on, is it worth it? Probably not. Actually, not
probably. It's not. But the future glory we have,
that hope we have, is not just a spiritual reality
but a physical one as well. That God's kingdom
will come in all its fullness. The promise is
one that sustains us as we live in the already
but not yet of God's kingdom. And here's the
final slap this Memorial Day weekend. That you've
heard me say before, and I'll say it again. When
we pray, God's kingdom come, God will be done
on earth as it is in heaven. Where is that? The
Lord's prayer. One of the things we have to understand
is we may be the kingdom of God that someone
experiences. Allow the conviction, the uncomfortableness,
and the awkwardness to set in. You may be the
kingdom experience for somebody else. What does
that look like if you don't have restoration
in your life and you don't have joy? What kind
of billboard for the kingdom of God are you if
it's, oh no, that person's just going to hurt
you again? Ooh, I'm going to hold on to that
for when I inevitably, I'm going to throw back
at them. Or I just can't get to joy because life
just stinks, everything else stinks, the socks
stink, whatever it is. What kind of billboard
for God are you? Because that's another way of
saying, what kind of kingdom are you bringing
to the world? Is it a kingdom of self or is it
a kingdom of the Savior? That's why we are called
to sing. Now I'm not saying sing and minimize
your pain. I'm not saying be honest with those
that have hurt you or be honest with the ones
you have hurt. But we are called to rejoice.
This future glory can now be experienced today
through singing amidst our suffering. Just as
Israel is called to sing in the midst of exile
and oppression, we are called to sing in the
midst of our suffering. That joy thing we talked
about? Our joy is not based on our circumstances,
but on the unchanging truth that God has already
secured for you the victory in Christ. This means
we should sing aloud when life is hard because
we know God's restoration is certain. We know
that God's restoration for us is personal. It's
not this ivory tower, just be fine, just be fine.
No, it's I see you. Let's walk this together.
Zephaniah's vision for restoration is not just
a corporate one, but a deeply personal one. God
promises to heal you and restore you. Do you
believe it? His love for his people is not in
the abstract. It's deeply relational. Take a
moment this week. Take a moment tomorrow. Reflect
on how God has personally restored you. The relationships
that he's brought to your life. The goodness
that he's brought to your life. And don't try
to tie your own things to it. Money, finances,
relationships, all of those things. What areas
of your life has he healed? For some of us, for
new believers, it's, I'm saved. My name's written
in the book of life. I no longer have to worry
about today, but I've been given a way to live.
It's a beautiful thing about the joy of God.
And how can we express that gratitude and joy?
Actively, not passively. All right, final, what
is Zephaniah saying then and now? This one's
a little longer, but there will be a little snippet
of the then and the now on the slides. For Israel,
this is then. Zephaniah's message was both sobering
and hopeful. In the midst of their judgment and
exile, he proclaimed that God would restore them,
remove their shame. and be present with them.
The call to sing aloud was a command to rejoice
in the promise of God's salvation, even before
it was realized. But friends, here's the part.
Despite their suffering, Israel was reminded
that God's restoration was coming, and that they
were to respond with joyful faith. All right,
so let's take it to the now. For us today, Zephaniah's
message is still relevant. We don't just face
the physical exile that Israel did, but we still
live in a broken world. And we await the final
restoration promised in Jesus. The call to sing
aloud still stands. We rejoice in the salvation
Christ has secured for me, for you, for us. And
friend, though we face struggles, even death,
we can celebrate because God's presence is with
us now. and our future glory is assured. But
here's the point. Like Israel, we are called
to rejoice in the certainty of God's promises,
even as we wait to the fulfillment done by him,
not by us. All right, it's the end of a sermon
series. So here's a wrap -up and a conclusion.
And because Zephaniah did it every week, I feel
like I could do it too. A challenge for the summer.
As we conclude our Hidden Treasures series, we
reflect on the profound message that God is a
God of restoration. Throughout Zephaniah, we've
seen that God's judgment is not only real, but
his mercy and grace is even more powerful. His
call to his people to sing aloud is a response
of the restoration he solely can bring. He has
dealt with our sin, he's defeated our enemies,
and is with us every moment. So friend, this
summer and every day, every season, let us live
in the joy of God's restoration. Whether we find
ourselves in seasons of rest or struggle, we
are called to what? Sing aloud. Let the song
of redemption live loud in your heart and in
your life. And if you are so bold, even out of
your mouth. Let the world hear of the joy that
comes with God's salvation. And here's the challenge
for all of us to see where God has us at the
end of the summer, end of the fall. As you go
into the summer, let your life be a song of joy.
Take time to reflect on God's restoration in
your life and let it lead you to sing aloud.
Whether in personal worship, acts of kindness,
Or sharing the gospel with others. Let the joy
of God's restoration overflow in your life. As
we await the fullness of God's kingdom, let us
share the hope and joy that we have around us.
And here's that final challenge. And let's start
meeting with each other to experience it. One
of the things you're going to hear over this
summer into the fall is a desire. from your church
leadership, myself, elders, deacons, all that,
that we would become more and more intentional
to meet together. One of the reasons why we're
going to till this soil is for when we get to
the Church of Acts, or the Book of Acts, Earth,
Wind, and Fire starting Labor Day weekend, we're
going to see the church mobile. And though we
all are mobile and we come here, no one here
lives here, and it just comes up from the basement
on Sunday mornings, we all are mobile here. It's
not about this. It's about going on the highways
and the byways to the end of the earth. Whether
it's the farm, the kitchen table, the mission
table, what have you. That we come together as
the church. Because what God brings together,
he then sends. That we are a sent people. So
as you reflect this summer on the joy of your
salvation, know that it's something that we can
rejoice and celebrate together in a church that
goes out. But more on that in a couple weeks.
Let's pray.